Overnight Honey Nut Granola

At 5:43 a.m. this morning, our phone rang. It was a recording from the school district informing us that Dominic's school was closed due to the weather. We had about 4-5 inches of fresh snow on the ground! Well, this is Michigan after all. Last night, I had prepared this granola, expecting to take a baggie of it with me this morning to eat in the car on the way to a 9:30 a.m. meeting. Well, my meeting was cancelled, so I ended up scooping a cup or so of this yummy granola into a bowl, adding fresh blueberries and strawberries and then pouring milk on top instead!!! An added benefit - it kept me filled up for hours. When I eat cereal out of a box, I usually start feeling light-headed and hungry well before lunchtime. Maybe it's all the oats?!?!?!


Ingredients

1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup honey
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
1 1/2 cups quick oats
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. In a large bowl, mix the butter, honey, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger with a large spoon until smooth.  Add the two different types of oats and combine until all the oats are covered with the butter and honey mixture. Stir in the walnuts and mix well. Pour into an ungreased jelly roll pan (11  x 17 inches) and spread evenly. Bake for 10 minutes and then turn the oven off. DO NOT open the oven door for at least 10 hours - basically overnight. When ready to eat, pull the pan out of the oven and break into small clusters with a spatula, a large spoon or your hands. Makes approximately five cups.  Store in a covered container or a Ziploc-type bag at room temperature up to one week for maximum freshness.  To make my "on-the-go granola," I added Craisins, mini chocolate chips and sunflower kernels.

Looks pretty tasty doesn't it?? Other good "add-ins," are peanuts, almonds, pecans, dark chocolate chips, peanut butter chips - pretty much just about anything that is your favorite. How about sprinkling the plain granola on top of some vanilla ice cream? Okay, I'm getting hungry now!